Rodrygo fired La Liga leaders Real Madrid to a 2-0 win over Athletic Bilbao with a stunning brace on Sunday to restore their eight-point advantage over Barcelona.
Earlier, Cristhian Stuani’s late goal earned Girona an entertaining 3-2 win over Real Betis, keeping the minnows on course for Champions League qualification.
After second-placed champions Barca beat Las Palmas on Saturday to put pressure on Carlo Ancelotti’s side, Los Blancos responded with a strong performance at the Santiago Bernabeu.
Without suspended Brazilian striker Vinicius Junior, his compatriot Rodrygo made the difference with two superb goals against Athletic ahead of next weekend’s Copa del Rey final against Mallorca.
Leones coach Ernesto Valverde rested goalkeeper Unai Simon and defender Dani Vivian, as well as Nico Williams, who had a minor muscle problem.
The defeat leaves fifth-placed Atletico Madrid able to overtake fourth-placed Athletic on Monday when they visit Villarreal.
Madrid, whose next match will be the visit of Manchester City on April 9 in the quarter-finals of the Champions League, had a comfortable night thanks to Rodrygo.
“He played very well, he made the difference, he managed to score early, he has a lot of quality in his movements, that’s what he has to do,” Ancelotti told reporters.
Ancelotti said he was not concerned that Rodrygo, who had scored just once in his last 13 matches in all competitions, was inconsistent in front of goal.
“There are very isolated cases of attackers who score all the time, like (Karim) Benzema or Cristiano (Ronaldo),” continued the Italian.
“With experience, Rodrygo will improve in this aspect, he is still young and plays with a lot of intensity, and sometimes because of this youth I ask him to do a lot of work, that’s why sometimes he is not as fresh in front of goal.”
‘Joy and happiness’
Rodrygo jogando na esquerda do campo é putaria pic.twitter.com/isauBfYbOD
– Santos da Opressão (@SantosOpressivo) March 31, 2024
Rodrygo opened the scoring after just seven minutes with a strike from just outside the box, beyond the reach of Julen Agirrezabala and into the top corner.
Diaz fired a shot against the post as Madrid looked for a second goal to kill off the game in the second half.
Rodrygo broke Dani Vivian’s ankle with this cut 🤣 pic.twitter.com/uosRjrWGRN
– WolfRMFC (@WolfRMFC) March 31, 2024
Rodrygo scored his and Madrid’s second goal after 73 minutes at the end of a clever move, ghosting inside Vivian and finishing at the near post.
La Liga joint top scorer Jude Bellingham, making his return after a two-match suspension for dissent, had a quiet night – literally at one point.
When complaining about a mistake that was not reported in his favor, he acted by closing his mouth, a reference to his recent punishment.
Eder Militao’s appearance in the finals after a lengthy knee injury he suffered against Athletic in August marked the end of a good night’s work for Madrid.
“I feel a lot of joy and happiness, hearing the fans when I came out to warm up is a joy that I can’t describe,” Militao told Real Madrid TV.
Their only concern was Fede Valverde limping out, but Ancelotti said it was no big deal.
“Historic year”
Miguel Ángel Sánchez Muñoz. pic.twitter.com/zS56Meg1oB
– Girona FC (@GironaFC) March 31, 2024
Michel Sanchez’s Girona had fallen into poor form after leading Madrid closely in the title race for most of the season, but Stuani’s late goal earned them an important victory.
Two errors from David Lopez allowed Betis striker Willian Jose to score twice to level Girona striker Artem Dovbyk’s goals, but veteran Uruguayan striker Stuani had the last laugh.
Third-place Girona leads fourth-place Athletic Bilbao by nine points, and is 10 behind Madrid and two ahead of Barca.
“Until (qualification) is mathematically sealed, we will continue to work and prepare for the matches as if they were the last,” Stuani told DAZN.
“We are on the right track, having a historic year and finishing it in the best way possible.”
The hosts took the lead when Chadi Riad handled Dovbyk’s header and the Ukrainian scored the resulting penalty, before Jose equalized home.
Girona regained the lead thanks to a good move finished by Dovbyk for his 16th goal, putting him level with Bellingham and Mallorca’s Ante Budimir as La Liga’s top scorer.
Betis were quickly level after a poor clearance attempt from Lopez allowed Jose to strike, but Stuani pounced acrobatically in stoppage time to help Girona move their European dream closer to reality.
It would be a remarkable achievement for a club only in the top flight for the fourth season in its history.
